Senior guard now a Washington fixture

Marker in hand and nearly 20 sets of eyes on him, Dyricus Simms-Edwards broke down a play called 'Kansas' for the Washington boys basketball team during a recent pre-practice chalk talk.

GREG STEWART

Marker in hand and nearly 20 sets of eyes on him, Dyricus Simms-Edwards broke down a play called 'Kansas' for the Washington boys basketball team during a recent pre-practice chalk talk.

'This year I have a new role,' the Panthers senior said. 'Last year I was kind of vocal, but we had Matt (Roth) and he was the guy everybody looked to. Now, I'm portraying that role.'

Two inches taller and noticably stronger, the 6-foot-3, 180-pounder has undergone more than just a physical change since Washington finished fourth in Class 3A last season.

'You have to lead by example,' he said.

Simms-Edwards will lead the Panthers into tonight's season opener, an 8 o'clock tip against Fayette County (Ga.).

FC's Noel Johnson, a 6-foot-7 senior headed to Southern California, is the marquee name in the game. But this event is where Simms-Edwards last year established himself as a rising star on the Illinois prep basketball scene.

After his transfer from Peoria High, where his father Meechie Edwards is the girls basketball coach, Simms-Edwards roasted the competition like a Thanksgiving gobbler and was embraced by the home crowd.

He scored 20 or more points in seven of Washington's first nine games, a lethal complement to Indiana-bound Roth. Recuiters took notice, as Simms-Edwards continued to climb the wish list of several college programs.

A star, it seems, was born.

Washington wrecked 26 of 29 opponents until the final weekend of the season. A pair of losses at the state finals didn't seem to affect his stock.

'He's a high-major for sure,' Joe Henricksen, publisher of the City/Suburban Hoops Report, said. 'And it will leave a lot of mid-majors in Illinois sad when he goes.'

Simms-Edwards was poised for a big summer when injuries cut it short.

Playing AAU ball with the Illinois Wolves — a team that included Diamond Taylor (Bolingbrook/Wisconsin), Joseph Bertrand (Sterling/Illinois) and Zeke Schneider (Metamora) — Simms-Edwards fell in a June practice and injured his wrist. Less than a month later, playing with Washington at the Morris Shootout, he sustained a stress fracture to his left foot.

Simms-Edwards also missed signing a national letter of intent prior to his senior season, choosing to reevaluate his college options by waiting until spring.

'I was kind of down, I was so excited to go to those things,' he said of his summer schedule. 'But after I thought about it, I realized it was an advantage for me to watch my (Washington) team and learn from a different perspective.

'I really used the time to take a different look at us and see what I could do to be a better player. It was a difficult experience, but I think it actually helped me out a lot.'

According to Washington coach Kevin Brown: 'You hate to see a guy get hurt, but I think it made us a better basketball team.'

One hundred twenty percent healthy, according to his dad, Simms-Edwards seems poised for a monster season. Ranked No. 7 in 3A, the Panthers are favored to win their fifth consecutive Mid-Illini Conference title. His points should be plentiful, the wins will pile up and the recruiters will follow.

'Somebody is going to get a great player,' Brown said.

Greg Stewart can be reached at 686-3202 or gstewart@pjstar.com.

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